Investing in Stock Market Concerns Majority of Americans

The stock market has been doing very well over the last few weeks, occasionally crossing the 13,000-point mark. Despite this, 61% of Americans are reporting that they are still wary about investing in the stock market, according to a survey by CouponCabin.

A quarter of respondents (26%) reported that they don’t trust the stock market. But an even bigger barrier to investing is that 32% just don’t have enough money to invest right now. If the economy was more stable, then 39% said that they would be much or somewhat more likely to invest in the market.

"It's been a challenging few years for Americans of all ages and financial standing," said Jackie Warrick, president and chief savings officer at CouponCabin.com. "As a result, many Americans have shied away from investing in the stock market. Among the reasons is complexity, as 35% of people we surveyed said they would be more likely to invest money in the market if it were less complicated."

Another reason why Americans aren’t investing in the market is sheer lack of knowledge: 17% think the market is too complicated and 11% aren’t sure how to even get started. According to the survey, they’re interested in learning. But less than half (43%) reported that it only somewhat likely that they would even consider a course or class to learn more about investing and the stock market.

Despite the fact that most people aren’t investing in the stock market, American adults are still following it (55%). The younger they are though, the larger the divide between the genders. Of those aged 18 to 34, 59% of men follow the market but only 30% of women do.

A slightly disconcerting number that the report revealed is how many people have no retirement accounts. Approximately three-quarters (73%) of adults aged 18 to 34 don’t invest in retirement accounts like 401(k)s or IRAs.

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